WASHINGTON,
D.C.
— Today the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) announced a
settlement with Security Group Inc., a South Carolina corporation, and its
subsidiaries, Security Finance Corporation of Spartanburg and Professional
Financial Services Corp.

As described in the
consent order, the Bureau found that the Security Group entities violated the
Consumer Financial Protection Act by making improper in-person and telephonic
collection attempts on consumer installment loans and retail sales installment
contracts. The Bureau found that these improper attempts included physically
preventing consumers from leaving their homes and visiting and calling
consumers’ places of work while knowing that those contacts could endanger the
consumers’ employment. The Bureau also found that the Security Group entities
violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by regularly furnishing inaccurate and
incomplete information about consumers to credit reporting agencies.

Under the terms of
the consent order, Security Group and its subsidiaries are barred from certain
collection practices, and must correct certain inaccurate information about
consumers they furnished to credit reporting agencies, and pay a $5 million
civil money penalty.

The
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection is a 21st century agency that helps
consumer finance markets work by regularly identifying and addressing outdated,
unnecessary, or unduly burdensome regulations, by making rules more effective,
by consistently enforcing federal consumer financial law, and by empowering
consumers to take more control over their economic lives. For more information,
visit consumerfinance.gov.